How to Build a Raised Garden Bed On The Cheap

Having a raised garden bed is great, especially if you have bad drainage in your yard. In this video, which was created courtesy of TheCraftyGemini, we will learn how to make a simple raised garden bed that you can make with less than $15. The one that I will provide the step-by-step instructions for in this guide is a four-foot bed. The video will also show you a rectangular raised garden bed that was crafted from two by fours.

In this video post you'll learn how to make a simple raised garden bed that you can make with less than $15.

What You’ll Need

To start, you are going to need two boards that are two by eight by eight in size. Those boards will need to be cut down so that they are only four feet long. These will serve as the sides of the garden bed that you are creating.
You will also need some other pieces of scrap wood to help you connect the boards. In the video, she used some scrap two by four pieces that she cut down to size, which seemed to work very well for the project.

In addition to the wood, you are going to need a drill and some outdoor wood screws. Cordless drills typically work best for this type of project. The screws need to be at least two and a half inches long so that they are long enough to go through both boards to secure them in place. You will need about 20 screws to complete the project.

The Steps

To create this single layer raised bed, start by laying out the four pieces of wood that are four feet in length. Take the small, cut down pieces of two by four and line them up with the edges of two of the boards. There should be one on each end or two per board, meaning the other two boards are left alone for now.

Once the scraps are flush, pre-drill your holes and secure them with screws. You will want two screws on each end, which can be pulsed into the wood to secure it. Once that is complete on all four sides, stand the sides up with the wood scraps so that they are parallel to each other, and then place the other two boards in place to create a square.

The corner two by four is going to rest on the inside of the board. Line up the edges, pre-drill your holes, and secure the wood with two screws. Once again this needs to be done on all four corners of the garden bed. If you cannot line up the corners, make sure the area that you are building it on is level.

Final Thoughts

Looking at this video, I think that this project turned out great. She used untreated wood because it is the best for a garden with food in it so that chemicals do not come in contact with your plants. If you are going to use this raised garden bed for flowers, you can use wood that has been treated to last longer, you can paint the wood to match your outdoor décor, or you can adjust the height of the garden bed if you’d like. Make sure to check out the video by TheCraftyGemini for a visual of what the raised garden bed should look like.